THE CHAMPIONSHIPS

July 1, 2025

Novak Djokovic

Press Conference

N. DJOKOVIC/A. Muller

6-1, 6-7, 6-2, 6-2

THE MODERATOR: Novak, good to get the first win under your belt. Give us your thoughts on the match.

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Yeah, good to win. Obviously I'm finished tonight. As I said on the court, it went from my absolute best feeling, best game in the first set, many break chances to break in the second to my absolute worst feeling in a long time.

Yeah, had issues with the stomach. My energy completely dropped. I was just, yeah, trying to survive on the court for quite some time.

Then, yeah, after a while the energy came back, and I could go back playing from the baseline the way I played in the first set.

Credit to Alex obviously for winning the second set and playing solid. But I think that I should be happy with a performance once I was feeling good on the court, serving very well. That's one of the probably things that I will take away today as highlights of the game.

THE MODERATOR: Questions, please.

Q. Your hit with Aryna before the tournament. I saw you after giving her a lot of encouragement and advice. How much satisfaction does it give you to share your wisdom? It must be quite nice to share those moments with a female player, as well.

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: Of course. I mean, it was the first time I got to hit with Aryna. Yeah, basically the way I see it, all the success she has from this moment onwards is biggest credit comes to me (smiling).

Jokes aside, we have really good relationship, as well. I know that she has a great team of people around her, a great support system. It's not a surprise that she's been doing so well.

I love the personality. I love how she balances off court, I guess, interests, and character really comes out, and also on court being so fierce as a competitor. She deserves to be where she is, No. 1 in the world. She's been so consistent.

Yeah, we had a little chat after the training session. She asked me couple of questions. Of course, I'm very happy to always share with anybody, as I was doing with a lot of the other male tennis players mostly.

Yeah, obviously what we talk about stays between us. I hope that it can serve them as a great, I guess, even if it's just an encouragement, even if it's something that they heard before, but hearing it from me maybe sounds different. It impacts them differently.

Of course, I'm honored to be in the position where the No. 1 in the world comes to me, approaches me, and asks me some questions and advices and guidance. That's, of course, a very privileged position to be in.

Always try to be available.

Q. You've spoken a lot about how much this tournament meant to you from a very young age. Do you remember how old you were and where it was that you first set foot on a grass court? What was your first impression of the surface?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: It would be quite late in my development career, in my junior days. I think it was the first year that I played because I never played junior Wimbledon. The first year that I qualified here back in 2005 was probably the first year I stepped on the grass.

That was the year that I started working with my coach, Marian Vajda. The first match that we had together, coach and player, was in The Netherlands. I still remember I played in one of the side courts, a first-round match against Waske, a big-serving German. 7-6, 6-7, 7-6. I saved three sets and won that match.

Marian was like, If this is going to be every match, how every match is going to look like, then I'm probably going to lose hair very quickly (smiling).

Then very soon after that, I came to play qualifications at Roehampton. I qualified beating Wesley Moodie, who was later that year, one of the next years, champion in doubles. Big serve. I kind of saved match points, as well.

I remember we had also interruption because of the dark. We came back the next day. My brothers came over. My parents, everyone, because Wimbledon was always the most special tournament in my life. Always wanted to play the main draw.

It was a big chance. I qualified, and I won a couple rounds. I entered the top hundred in the world for the first time. That was actually the first year I stepped out on the grass. I must say that it felt very natural for me to adapt to it, even though I grew up on clay. In my country I played mostly on clay.

I probably had the best results throughout my career on hard court, up to certain point. Then you can argue also grass court in terms of Grand Slam results is right up there with Australian Open, I would say. It's just that we on the tour play mostly on hard courts. That's why obviously results-wise it's right at the top in terms of percentage of wins.

I always loved playing on grass. I think it's not only that it suits my game, and I'm not a natural serve and volleyer, but I do like to mix it up. I think the grass makes a player be more aggressive with his style.

I think mostly I would probably say that it's a motivating factor to me playing on grass because of childhood days and always dream be to be in Wimbledon, winning it.

When I'm here, I always set my form so I can play my best tennis in Wimbledon. I just love every day spending in this tournament.

Q. What do you make of your next opponent, Dan Evans, who uniquely has a 100% record against you, from one match? Are you impressed by the way he's not the tallest, perhaps not the fastest serve, but he's able to make a living as a tennis player with his tricks and skills?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: For sure, he's a super talented player and a great competitor. Always backs himself up on the court, believes in himself.

Playing obviously against a Brit in Britain, it's never easy. I have to be ready for a great battle. I haven't played him in a long time. The only time we played was on clay actually. He beat me in Monte-Carlo.

He uses his slice quite a lot. I think that favors grass courts because the ball stays low. He can serve and volley. He chips the ball, comes in, mixes up the pace. He's really a tricky opponent to play against. You don't want to have him in your draw really in the early rounds.

Look, it's a good test. It's a good test for both of us. I think he's been picking his form up, as well. I think his rankings are not doing justice at the moment. He deserves to be ranked higher.

He's been a really tough player to face on any surface, particularly the grass and quicker ones. I know that because that's always the talk of the locker room. He's one of the guys that you don't want to face on grass. But I look forward to a good challenge. Let's see what happens.

Q. You won almost 80% of your points at the net today. How pleased are you with where your net game is at at the moment? Can you talk about the evolution of your net game, and also potentially is that a shot that has only gotten better as your career has progressed?

NOVAK DJOKOVIC: If you go back at the very early years of my professional career, I was coming into the net quite a bit actually. I had that kind of tennis game style where I would take a short ball and just come in on any surface really, particularly quicker ones.

Then I kind of backed up a bit, and I wasn't really keen on getting to the net. I was just playing a little bit more passive in the years to come. It really does depend.

I think in the important points, sometimes you try to go for it, and then you really try to take the ball early and come to the net and maybe close the angles to your opponent. Depends who you play really.

But I always try to have all the shots in my arsenal, so to say. I always try to be very versatile player who can adapt to any conditions, any surface, or any opponent for that matter.

I think it's important to be having a very complete game nowadays. We don't have that many serve and volleyers because the return game of players has improved so much. The balls have gotten slower and bigger. It's not easy to finish the points at the net.

Nevertheless, on this surface it does really help if you have confidence to come in and know how to play, how to position yourself. I wouldn't say I'm a very natural volleyer, but I think I have - you're right - maybe in the last five, six, seven years have improved that quite a bit and tried to work on that serve and volley, particularly on quicker surfaces.